Borrower European Investment Bank (EIB)Issue Amount 300 million sterlingMaturity Date September 08, 2014Coupon 3.375 pctReoffer price 105.119Spread 64 basis pointsUnderlying govt bond Over the 5.0 pct September 2014 UKTPayment Date October 28, 2011Lead Manager(s) Goldman Sachs, HSBC & Royal Bank of ScotlandRatings Aaa (Moody’s), AAA (S&P),AAA (Fitch)Full fees UndisclosedNotes The issue size will total 1.95 billionsterling when fungibleISIN XS0423205524Security details and RIC, when available, will beonCustomers can right-click on the code forperformance analysis of this new issueFor ratings information, double click onFor all bonds data, double click onFor Top international bonds newsFor news about this issuer, double click on the issuer RIC,where assigned, and hit the newskey (F9 on Reuters terminals)Data supplied by International Insider.
Japan is burdened with the task of cleaning up the
tsunami-hit Daiichi nuclear power plant in Fukushima, located
240 kilometres (150 miles) northeast of Tokyo, and the
surrounding regions.The plant, crippled by a devastating earthquake and tsunami
in March, has spread radiation, stoking public concerns and
forcing some 80,000 people to leave their homes after the
government banned entry within a 20 km radius of Daiichi.Removing layers of topsoil from areas contaminated by
radiation is one of the methods being considered by Japan, but
the team of 12 experts sent by the Vienna-based International
Atomic Agency (IAEA) said it would be impractical.”We are not saying the government’s approach is
over-conservative, what we want is for the government to avoid
becoming over-conservative in the future,” said Tero Tapio
Varjoranta, the team’s deputy leader.Efforts to bring the plant under control have progressed
steadily, but Japan still faces the challenge of decontaminating
vast land affected by the disaster, which the environmental
ministry says could be about 2,400 square km (930 square miles),
an area roughly the size of Luxembourg.Japan’s environmental ministry has said the method of
scraping off surface soil could result in about 29 million cubic
metres of radioactive waste that needs to be disposed, and
finding a final storage place for the debris is seen as a major
headache for the government.”Where applicable, there are methods that do not require
storage. There are about 60 remediation technologies available.
We are taking the advice from our experiences in Chernobyl,
where a lot of mistakes were made,” Varjoranta said.Some of the methods included mixing up the removed topsoil
with clean material for the construction of roads and
reinforcement of banks, or storing them in various layers, the
IAEA says.The IAEA team, which will end its nine-day mission on
Saturday, will present a final report to the Japanese government
next month.”The word ‘conservative’ appeared several times in the
report. We have been working based on the concept of the
public’s safety and I don’t think that is wrong,” said Goshi
Hosono, Japan’s environmental minister, after being presented
with a draft report by the IAEA officials.But he added: “We need to take their advice into
consideration when we create our road map for the storage of
radioactive waste.”
The service, called O2 Connect, will initially be available on Apple and Google’s Android smartphones to 1,000 customers, with a view to launching a commercial service next year, Telefonica-owned O2 said on Wednesday.”This trial will allow us to explore the potential of delivering VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) services to customers,” said Richard Porter, O2’s head of consumer products.The company said that in a commercial product, some parts of the O2 Connect service would be included within existing pricing, while others would be sold as extras.Internet protocol services, typified by Skype, which Microsoft is buying for $8.5 billion, offer free voice and video calls routed over Internet networks.O2 said the service would not need any additional log-ins and would not require the receiver of the call to be signed up, both of which were key advantages over existing VoIP services.Analysts at Fitch said the plan highlighted a challenge for network operators: overcoming the commoditization of voice calls — a process that was being facilitated by declines in the rates mobile operators charge one another for connecting calls.Damien Chew, senior director in Fitch’s TMT team, said: “A key barrier to free voice at present is mobile termination rates, which remain high compared to landline rates.”“However, regulatory pressure has and will continue to drive these rates down. The lower they go, the more attractive free voice as a loss leader becomes to a variety of market players, beyond just Internet call companies. This will translate into more downward pressure on voice prices.”Fitch said the product could be a brand differentiator, and any negative price implications would be further mitigated by the practice of bundling voice, SMS and data for the UK’s post-paid customers.
Borrower European Investment Bank (EIB)Issue Amount 50 million sterlingMaturity Date March 07, 2044Coupon 4.5 pctIssue price 111.323Reoffer price 111.323Spread 26 basis pointsUnderlying govt bond over the 4.25 pct December 2046 UKTPayment Date October 19, 2011Lead Manager(s) Royal Bank of ScotlandRatings Aaa (Moody’s), AAA (S&P),AAA (Fitch)Listing luxFull fees UndisclosedDenoms (K) 1Governing Law EnglishNotes Launched under issuer’s EMTN programmeThe issue size will total 550 millionSterling when fungibleISIN XS0295479983Security details and RIC, when available, will beonCustomers can right-click on the code forperformance analysis of this new issueFor ratings information, double click onFor all bonds data, double click onFor Top international bonds newsFor news about this issuer, double click on the issuer RIC,where assigned, and hit the newskey (F9 on Reuters terminals)Data supplied by International Insider.
APPROVALS AND WITHDRAWALS:— Ugitour, part of French insurer AXA , Caisse des
Depots et Consignations and Sogecap, a subsidiary of French bank
Societe Generale , to acquire joint control of several
Belgian and French properties (approved Oct. 11)NEW LISTINGS:— French company Caisse des Depots et Consignations to
acquire 50 percent of a Paris real estate from a subsidiary of
French insurer Axa (notified Oct. 11/deadline Nov.
17/simplified)— French power and transport engineering group Alstom
and Bouygues subsidiaries Bouygues
Immobilier and Exprim SAS to form a joint venture (notified Oct.
11/deadline Nov. 17/simplified)— German natural gas supplier Verbundnetz Gas
Aktiengesellschaft to sell a 25.1 percent stake in VNG Austria
to CE Gas Marketing & Trading (notified Oct. 7/deadline Nov.
15/simplified)EXTENSIONS AND OTHER CHANGES:NoneFIRST-STAGE REVIEWS BY DEADLINEOCT 13— Israeli drugmaker Teva Pharmaceutical Industries
to acquire U.S. specialty drugmaker Cephalon
(notified Aug. 25/deadline extended to Oct. 13 from Sept. 29
after Teva offers commitments)OCT 14— Private equity firm CVC Capital Partners to acquire a
stake in international health club operator Virgin Active
(notified Sept. 9/deadline Oct. 14)— Private equity firms KKR and Silver Lake, and funds
controlled by Technology Crossover Ventures to acquire joint
control of Arizona-registered company Godaddy Group (notified
Sept. 9/deadline Oct. 14/simplified)OCT 18— Mitsubishi Corp to acquire a stake in Czech auto
car body maker Sungwoo Hitech from South Korea’s Sungwoo Hitech
Co Ltd (notified Sept. 13/deadline Oct.
18/simplified)OCT 20— Dutch bank AEGON’s Spanish unit to acquire a 50
percent stake in Spanish life insurer Cajaburgos Vida, part of
Banca Civica (notified Sept. 15/deadline Oct.
20/simplified)— Danish dairy coperative Arla Foods to acquire German
dairy cooperative Allgauland (notified Sept. 15/deadline Oct.
20)— A joint venture led by Gores Group LLC to acquire
clothing retailer Mexx from Liz Claiborne Inc (notified
Sept. 15/deadline Oct. 20/simplified)OCT 24— German sugar company Suedzucker to acquire a 25
percent stake in British commodities trading company ED&F Man
(notified Sept. 19/deadline Oct. 24)OCT 26— German property operator ECE and German retailer Metro
to set up a joint venture (notified Sept. 21/deadline
Oct. 26)— U.S.-based Seagate Technology to acquire Samsung
Electronic’s hard disk drive business (notified
April 19/deadline extended for the second time to Oct. 26 from
Oct. 10)— U.S. equipment maker Caterpillar to acquire
German maker of gas and diesel engine maker MWM Holding GmbH
(notified March 14/deadline extended to Oct. 26 from Sept 16
after Commission opens in-depth investigation and despite
commitments offered)OCT 28— U.S. company Dow Chemical and Japanese trading
house Mitsui to set up a Brazilian joint venture
(notified Sept. 23/deadline Oct. 28/simplified)— German conglomerate Siemens (SIEGn.DE) to acquire Dutch
engineering company NEM Holding (notified Sept. 23/deadline Oct.
28)OCT 31— Vitol Investment Holdings, a unit of oil trader Vital
, and U.S. energy company ArcLight to acquire joint
control of Luxembourg-based Petro Lux (notified Sept.
26/deadline Oct. 31/simplified)NOV 3— Belgian building materials group Etex to acquire German
peer Lafarge’s gypsum assets in Europe and South
America (notified Sept. 27/deadline Nov. 3)— U.S. healthcare company Johnson & Johnson to
acquire Swiss medical devices maker Synthes Inc
(notified Sept. 27/deadline Nov. 3)— Private equity group TPG Capital LP to acquire a
stake in Danish online brokerage Saxo Bank from Portugal’s Banco
Espirito Santo (notified Sept. 27/deadline Nov.
3/simplified)NOV 8— German fruit producer Agrana and Austrian equipment maker
RWA to combined their subsidiaries into a joint venture
(notified Sept. 30/deadline Nov. 8)NOV 10— U.S. cleaning and pest-control services company Ecolab
to acquire water treatment services company Nalco
Holding (notified Oct. 4/deadline Nov. 10)NOV 14— German industrial services company Buchen
Industrieservice to acquire German technical services company
ThyssenKrupp Xervon (notified Oct. 6/deadline Nov.
14/simplified)NOV 30— U.S. technology company Western Digital Corp to
acquire Hitachi’s hard disk drive business (notified
April 20/deadline extended for the fourth time to Nov. 30 from
Nov. 9 after Western Digital offered remedies)— U.S. conglomerate General Electric, Russian energy
producer and importer Inter Rao Ues and Russian engine maker
United Engine Corporation to set up a joint venture (notified
Sept. 30/deadline Nov 9/simplified)DEC 13— Deutsche Boerse (DB1Gn.DE) and NYSE Euronext to
merge (notified June 29/deadline extended to Dec. 13 from Aug. 4
after Commission opens in-depth probe)GUIDE TO EU MERGER PROCESSDEADLINES:The European Commission has 25 working days after a deal is
filed for a first-stage review. It may extend that by 10 working
days to 35 working days, to consider either a company’s proposed
remedies or an EU member state’s request to handle the case.Most mergers win approval but occasionally the Commission
opens a detailed second-stage investigation for up to 90
additional working days, which it may extend to 105 working
days.SIMPLIFIED:Under the simplified procedure, the Commission announces the
clearance of uncontroversial first-stage mergers without giving
any reason for its decision. Cases may be reclassified as
non-simplified — that is, ordinary first-stage reviews — until
they are approved.
